Displacement
by Capital-C
Summary: At what point had she gone mad? Had she always been insane? Helga couldn't say...
1. Chapter 1

**Displacement**

At what point had she gone mad?

Had she always been insane?

Helga couldn't say...

But one thing was certain.

She'd been smiling when she stabbed her.

A pleasant, cheerful smile, without so much as a hint of malice. She was smiling even now, as she calmly rinsed the knife over the kitchen sink.

"I'm ever so certain that I'm doing you a favor Helga." Lila remarked in her usual tone. "When Arnold learns that you've been hospitalized, he'll simply fly to your bedside."

With that, she shut off the faucet.

"And don't worry, I'm ever so certain that you'll make a full recovery. _Though I'm afraid I was a bit clumsy with your parents._"

She reached for a towel and began drying the knife.

"You were all supposed to awaken in the hospital and realize just how precious life is, how important it is to spend it together as a family. But I'm ever so certain that won't be happening now."

She finished drying the knife and returned it to its place in the wooden block on the counter top.

"It's not the end I would've hoped for, but I'm certain that Olga will be more than willing to look after you now that they're gone."

She smiled warmly at this. As if speaking about a pleasant family reunion, instead of the death of two people.

Helga had remained silent through all of this, simply doing her best not to pass out as she lay there on the kitchen floor, her mind and body reeling from the shock of being so abruptly penetrated.

Now, however, she simply had to speak.

"Are you serious?" She remarked incredulously, her body protesting against the outburst.

"You know, I always thought I was nuts." She continued. " But you, you seriously take the cake."

"How do you even plan on getting away with all this? Don't you think you might end up in jail, or maybe the nut house for killing two people and stabbing their daughter?" She asked, her voice still laced with pain.

Lila smiled, as if preparing to answer a silly question.

"I'm ever so certain that won't happen Helga. My family has been helping people this way for generations. It wouldn't be safe unless we had some way of making them forget what they've seen." She replied as she produced a small syringe and prepared to administer the injection.

Helga's eyes flashed with panic at the sight of it, her first instinct to retreat. But even with the fear driven adrenaline boosting her mobility a bit, she didn't have time to move before Lila was upon her, pinning her to the floor as she franticly struggled.

Her arms were forced behind her back and kept there by the painful weight on top of her. Her head was then pinned by one hand as the other brought the syringe to the side of her neck. She cried out in pain and protest as the tip was forced in, the unknown drug entering her system as the syringe was emptied. Lila then shushed her, gently stroking her hair as if attempting to calm a small child.

"Go to sleep now Helga." She said. "The ambulance is on its way."

Her words and actions were in no way comforting, yet Helga gradually ceased her squirming, her vision growing hazy and distorted as the powerful drug took effect. She couldn't seem to form a single coherent thought as the world around her slowly faded to black.

(A.N) Here and there, I've seen stories in which Lila is presented as evil or somehow malicious. However, it's my opinion that if she ever did something truly terrible, she would most likely believe herself to be doing something positive. The result of that thought is this story.

On a separate note, this story has been gathering dust on my computer since the latter part of 2009 at least. I've dug it out a number of times. Going over it again and again, attempting to make it just right. But I've now accepted that it's never going to be absolutely perfect in my eyes. So here it is, from me to you and all that. I do hope you enjoy it.

Disclaimer: I don't own Hey Arnold. I don't pretend to own Hey Arnold. And I'm not making any money off this story


	2. Chapter 2

**Displacement**

Something wasn't right.

Why did she suddenly feel so terribly leery of entering her own home?

It wasn't exactly the most pleasant place in the world, true enough. But never had she felt something so closely akin to fear from simply being near it.

The very air surrounding the structure, was somehow wrong. Very wrong.

She told herself that she was simply being paranoid. That this feeling was just that, a feeling. And yet, it refused to go away.

Despite this, she forced herself to enter and was greeted by the sounds and smells of a meal being prepared. This could only mean that Olga had returned for a visit.

She didn't like the idea of spending time with her less than favorite person. Though, in an odd sort of way, she felt better now that a new set of emotions had replaced her unease.

She made her way into the kitchen, finding a tray of fresh baked cookies, several pots bubbling on the stove, and a roast in the oven.

It was just the sort of thing she'd come to expect from Olga. But one thing was off. In place of her picture perfect older sister, was the last person she would've expected to see.

"Lila?" She remarked, confused.

"Hello Helga." Lila greeted, smiling pleasantly.

Between her tone and the way she'd simply been standing there, it was clear she'd been expecting Helga's arrival. This fact did not escape Helga's notice, though she failed to guess its importance. Instead, she simply grew annoyed with it and made her approach.

"Lila, what are you doing in my house?" She stated curtly.

Lila simply smiled in response. And with that, a strange sensation flooded Helga's senses, her eyes filling with shocked realization as she stood there gaping.

She'd failed to make note of the kitchen knife which had been in Lila's hand from the moment she'd entered. The knife which she now felt inside herself.

Her eyes met with Lila's, the other girl's smile still present.

It was in this moment that she experienced more fear than she'd ever felt in her life, closely followed by the jarring sensation of the knife being removed just as abruptly as it entered.

Her knees began to buckle as the pain surged through her body, the blood loss rapidly draining her strength. She felt herself being lowered to the floor as Lila whispered something, but couldn't focus on the words. She simply lay there, doing her best to remain conscious as her assailant stood, making her way to the sink to clean the knife.

She couldn't say at what point Lila Sawyer had gone mad. If she'd ever been sane in the first place. But one thing was certain...

That smile would chill her to the core for the rest of her days.

(A.N) As you can see, the second chapter of this story is actually its beginning. So just to be perfectly clear, this is done deliberately.

There was some debate in my mind about including this part, especially considering the fact that I almost didn't write it in the first place. I originally planned to make Displacement a oneshot. But as I imagined how the situation might have developed, I couldn't help writing it out. This is the result.


	3. Chapter 3

**Displacement**

She'd awakened in the hospital in a great deal of confusion, recalling nothing of the past month or so. Not that she realized at the time just how much she'd forgotten. She only knew that she neither recalled being there, nor being involved in any situation that would cause her to be there.

She'd been unconscious for a number of days prior, in which time Olga had returned to the city to be at her side. It was from her sister that she learned the news regarding her parents shortly after waking.

The grieving Olga had been going on about nearly loosing her baby sister and being so grateful to still have her despite such a tragedy. Which had prompted Helga to inquire regarding the nature of said tragedy. Olga had then tearfully explained that Mommy and Daddy were gone. That the three of them had been attacked. And that Helga herself had been the only one the paramedics could save. Very few details beyond this were given or requested.

Helga wasn't certain just how she felt about the death of her parents.

Though she had cared for them in her own way, she couldn't say that she'd miss all the yelling, the neglect. Being compared to her sister. Watching her mother waste away in a drunken stupor. Or the disappointment that came with those moments in which they actually seemed to act like parents, only to return to their same old routine, over and over again.

She wouldn't miss one bit of it. And yet, she wasn't pleased to see them go. Not angered or saddened, but simply... not pleased.

She would've preferred to feel something more than this, but didn't. She couldn't seem to feel all that strongly over much of anything really. Even the fact that she would likely be raised by Olga for the remainder of her youth.

None of it even seemed real at the moment. As if she'd never awakened and was still dreaming.

This feeling lingered through much of her stay at the hospital, even during visits. She barely recalled who had come and gone most of the time. That was, with the exception of certain more memorable guest.

Arnold had been among the first to arrive and the last to leave during visiting hours each day, a fact which would've thrilled her to no end under different circumstances, but which somehow rang of something unsettling.

Between this, the pain medication, the actual injury, as well as the lingering state of shock, she hadn't been overly excited to see him. Not displeased. But simply... not excited.

His visits were more or less pleasant despite this, even if slightly muted at times. She'd actually spent time with him, without feeling the need to withdraw within her defensive persona. Even when they didn't happen to be alone for the moment.

He wasn't Arnold it seemed, but simply a person whom she cared for and was fond of. A friend even.

Among her other visitors was Phoebe, who appeared only slightly less than Arnold. Generally choosing to allow him the most time alone with Helga while she herself lingered in waiting rooms, the cafeteria, or any number of other locations within the hospital.

Gerald had come as well. Of his own accord, despite his history with Helga.

He'd actually admitted to considering her a friend of sorts, as well as having seen a measure of what Arnold and Phoebe had seen in her over the years. He'd mostly left her to them after that, generally acting as moral support to one or both of them whenever necessary.

Olga had stopped in briefly at least twice a day. Longer whenever possible.

This was between the time she spent arranging to take custody of Helga, acquiring a job as well as an apartment in the city, making funeral arrangements, not mention dealing with a host of other details.

She'd been so swamped at the time that none would've faulted her had she missed a few visits here and there, yet she'd somehow made time each day. A fact which did not go unnoticed by Helga.

_Lila Sawyer made an appearance as well... _

Helga had visibly tensed at the sight of her, her body recalling the trauma as she tightly gripped Arnold's wrist.

Sensing her distress, he had suggested that Lila see her some other time, prompting the girl to leave. Helga had then surprised herself by confessing to Arnold that she'd actually been frightened.

"_She scares me Arnold."_ She'd said. _"I don't know why, but she scares me. I don't want her anywhere near me."_

He'd been confused by it, but hadn't pressed the issue. This was enough for Helga, for she herself did not understand the feeling she'd experienced.

Lila made no further appearances during Helga's stay at the hospital. Possibly thanks to Arnold. He'd never said this was the case, though she suspected as much.

He continued by her side throughout the remainder of her recovery, helping her through physical therapy and providing additional support when necessary. She gradually regained much of her original spark, though a great deal of her more prickly nature had faded.

To put it simply, there wasn't nearly as much she considered important enough to be angry over anymore. At least, not seriously so.

This wasn't to say that she'd become entirely docile. Simply more measured. In fact, in a number of ways, she'd actually grown considerably more bold than she'd ever been.

She continued spending time with Arnold long after healing and completing therapy, no longer feeling the need to maintain her bullying image for fear of appearing soft. She was perfectly capable of sticking up for herself without it.

She and Arnold continued growing closer over the years that followed. And somewhere along the line, they'd become official.

There weren't any desperate confessions or climactic moments. They'd simply been honest with themselves and each other.

Helga's relationship with her sister had greatly improved as well.

True, Olga's somewhat deluded personality could still become a bit tiresome at times. But it didn't inspire the sort of anger and frustration it had once caused in Helga. In fact, she now considered a number of her sister's previously annoying traits to be endearing. To a point at least.

It wasn't perfect. But it helped that Olga had learned to listen a bit better. That she'd grown just slightly more realistic about the world around her. That she actually made certain that her sister was fed and well cared for. Something which couldn't be said for either of their parents.

It was troubling at times, how much her life had improved as a direct result of their deaths. It caused her a measure of guilt on occasions. And yet, this was not what troubled her most.

There was something. Something at the very edge of remembrance. Something which scraped at the back of her mind at odd moments, telling her that all she had gained was somehow tainted. The same feeling she'd experienced the day Arnold had first come to visit.

She didn't understand it. But the day would come when a single word would trigger a memory. No more than mere flashes to start with. But slowly, she would remember the day which had changed her life. And once again, her life would change.

End

A/N It's rather open ended, I know. But this is as far as I alone can carry it.

If anyone wishes to continue this or explore the world of this story in any other manner, you officially have the go ahead. Scratch that. You not only have the go ahead, I'm actually asking you to do it.

For all those accepting this call to action, I would naturally make myself available to assist, if called upon to do so. That is, I would be open to providing advisement and or doing some of the actual writing if necessary. Admittedly, I would prefer to stick to a strictly advisory capacity, considering the fact that my strength as a consultant is in many ways greater than my ability as a writer. But I wouldn't say no to acting as a Co-Author / Consultant.

Of course, if there are no takers. Then I suppose we can just leave it at this.


End file.
